Hearing Aids?

[Sigarms]

locknut

I sincerely hope things work out for you per this issue.

One program I didn't know about was care credit...

Health and Wellness Credit Card - CareCredit

The CareCredit credit card can help pay for health, wellness, and medical costs with special financing options. Learn how it works and apply today!

www.carecredit.com

I've always been a 0% interest free kind of guy, the question becomes what the seller is charging you for his fee that he's being charged by the credit company.

The irony is my wife has used this same credit company (owned by Synchrony) and I didn't even know about it.

This morning at 0500 I got up, fed the dogs and let them out, told my wife I'd be back upstairs instead of doing some work on the computer. I go back upstairs, lay in bed, and my wife for some reason asks me how my father is doing?. I'm asking her how I would know how my dad is doing at 0530 in the morning, and she sighs and tells me "I didn't ask how your father was doing, but how is your shoulder doing?".

 

[Herness]

Where do you normally buy those cheap hearing aids (want to give it a try) ? In the drug store or online pharmacies? Never paid attention if they are available in the nearest stores. I will give a call to my favorite canadian pharmacy and see what they have to say on this matter.

 

[Frankenkubota]

FWIT......I'm the last guy to hear about anything but....i
hear you can buy used hearing aids.

makes sense to me

 

[jeff9366]

Hearing Aids for those with MODERATE hearing loss are newly available over-the-counter rather than prescription only. This only since October 2022.

I expect there will be a lot of advertising/markleting of this option beginning in January 2023 by the national chain drug stores and other venders. Prices start at ~ $700 MSRP.

 

[QRTRHRS]

I must have missed this thread during a time when my internet service was almost non existant. Anyway, I am on my third pair. My first was paid for by a program in KY designed to help people with disabilities get a job. Those lasted about four years. I was in for a checkup and cleaning. The hmm, audiologist put the stabilizer bars on wrong and I was having trouble keeping one in my ear but I could not figure out what was wrong. I even went back to office to no avail. Then, I lost that one in my horse barn. They offered me a "remanufactured" one for a grand.

I then filed for a VA claim which was denigehed. I found out that there was a VA rep covering my county but that person was going on vacation. She referred me to a rep for a different county. He had the right words I guess because they sent me to an audiologist whom told me that they would okay me for tinnitus but not for hearing loss based on his report.

Driving twin stack 318 Detroit Diesels' as well as industrial settings has not been kind to my hearing I guess. However they found me to be 10% disabled because of my tinnitus (M110 base piece) so I get a small check every month plus I am in the VA health system which I mostly just use for my hearing aids. (I would use them for more but it is about 80 miles or so to my clinic.)

I am now on my second pair (Signia) through the VA. All three pairs that I have had have been bluetooth enabled.

The bluetooth is great for hands free phone use. I have had calls where I have had to turn off the bluetooth due to feedback? Also, my first two pairs had open cones and people close by could hear what I was hearing.

My tinnitus is like being next to a jet engine. The hearing aids keep it down to a very low "buzz". When I put them in it only takes a few seconds to minimize it. My CPAP helps out at night when I have my aids out.

The new aids are rechargeable where as the first two sets were on batteries which would last four or five days. I don't miss the batteries.

The land line is so noisy at my house that we had to turn in our Caption Call phone because we could not effectively use it. CC phones are great otherwise. I highly suggest looking into one for those with hearing issues.

 

[goeduck]

I am switching medical plans in January. In a casual conversation with my neighbors, they said they got name brand hearing aides fully paid for by their insurance at $7200 a pair. What the heck? Our new insurance plan in January does not match that, safe to say.

We are on the same insurance now and do not really need hearing aides, but we did not want to look a gift horse in the mouth. We made an appointment for last week and will be fitted on the 15th. The neightbor lady says she can now hear her husband when she wears them. I noticed she never has them on

The only time I think I could use them is in restaurants or large gatherings.

 

[Sigarms]

I am switching medical plans in January. In a casual conversation with my neighbors, they said they got name brand hearing aides fully paid for by their insurance at $7200 a pair. What the heck? Our new insurance plan in January does not match that, safe to say.

We are on the same insurance now and do not really need hearing aides, but we did not want to look a gift horse in the mouth. We made an appointment for last week and will be fitted on the 15th. The neightbor lady says she can now hear her husband when she wears them. I noticed she never has them on

The only time I think I could use them is in restaurants or large gatherings.

I don't know of any insurance plan that covers "high dollar" hearing aids.

From personal experience, hearing aids in large gathering settings can be a pain to "dial in" to drown out the background noise while hearing those around you. Mine are the "high dollar" and I still have issues trying to "dial them in" to drown out the background noise (you use your app on your phone that are linked to the hearing aids by bluetooth). That said, I'm not great with technology at times.

 

[Sigarms]

Sorry for bumping this thread, but I wonder whether anyone ever bought used hearing aids. Isn't choosing cheaper hearing aids a better option?

The way I see it, any option that could help is better than nothing.

My wife was getting a little tired of me misunderstanding her that I was given one option, the high dollar option LMAO.

Only issue now is even with them in, she thinks I still have selected hearing at times when I'm with her because I don't have an excuse LOL

 

[cqaigy2]

Going in for my first hearing test/exam. Any advice or things that you had wished you'd brought up during exam?

 

[Oaktree]

From personal experience, hearing aids in large gathering settings can be a pain to "dial in" to drown out the background noise while hearing those around you. Mine are the "high dollar" and I still have issues trying to "dial them in" to drown out the background noise (you use your app on your phone that are linked to the hearing aids by bluetooth). That said, I'm not great with technology at times.

I've wondered about that. Even when I was young and had (relatively) good hearing, I always had trouble making out a conversation in a crowded room, or if there was a radio/tv playing in the background. I probably came across rude to any number of people when that was not the intent. My left ear is a little better at hearing in those situations...I'll always make a point of telling someone that I'm just favoring that ear, not looking away when we're talking.

Is there another way to "tune" hearing aids other than via a smartphone? Don't have one, don't want one.

 

[FERLING]

Where did you buy your hearing aids?

What can you expect them to run for a pair?

Did you find they helped you?

After 17 years, wife is getting to fed up with me not hearing, and with my dad living with us, he's on her side.

I'm not completely deaf, but definately have a hearing loss since my late teens, early 20's, and I'm certain it's not getting better.

Thinking of Costco, but mother in law went to doctors office, ran her like 6k, but insurance covered 2.5k of that. Our insurance doesn't cover hearing aids, looked.

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Try one of these! (Search Amazon.com)

 

[Oaktree]

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Try one of these! (Search Amazon.com)
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I have to wonder if something that cheap is going to be any good. Quality hearing aids are more than just an amplifier, though I don't know exactly what sort of sound processing they do...I'd imagine some sort of equalization and compression at the very least.

There've been el-cheapo aids for years...a co-worker of mine maybe 20 years ago had something similar to an mp3 player...a unit with a microphone and amplifier that clipped to his belt or went in a pocket and earphones. This guy was REALLY deaf, and had it cranked so high that when you talked with him it would almost feed back on itself. Really annoying, can only imagine what it was like for him.

 

[goeduck]

Going in for my first hearing test/exam. Any advice or things that you had wished you'd brought up during exam?

My audiologist had a list of questions that I answered, besides that I just went in with the basic problems. Crowds, background noise, high pitch, wife's voice etc.

My wife is 100% deaf in one ear and they had a unit that will sit on the deaf ear and send signals to the good ear via bluetooth. When she went deaf in the one ear years ago, they only had wired units (from one side of the head to the other) that did that and she did not want to go the wired route. The solution will not give her the ability to locate sounds better but at least she can hear from the one (left) side No more yelling at her when I drive.

 

[goeduck]

I don't know of any insurance plan that covers "high dollar" hearing aids.

Good plan with no limit on price or brand but the premium went through the roof so we are moving to one that pays $2500 towards them every 4 years. We are getting these just in time, the neighbor had the same plan and verified they did not get charged. Brand was Oticon, the 3rd highest rated by Consumer reports. Very little difference from the highest ones they rated (Surprisingly Costco).

My Plan.

Consumer Reports

 

[Sigarms]

1 - I don't trust consumer reports due to the work in my own industry. I honestly believe consumer reports has no clue what they are doing (I do HVAC, and I wouldn't trust consumer reports on HVAC for anything). Perhaps hearing aids are plug and play like a refrigerator, I don't know. I do know a HVAC manufacturer who has tried to get clarification on exactly who they we're "surveying" with no comment by consumer reports.

2 - I went to a doctors office who actually had to clean my left ear due to ear wax build up. I first went to Costco for the cheaper brand, but they didn't have an audiologist on hand, and they couldn't clean my ear our.

3 - My wife told me, go to the experts (the actual doctors office). Yes, I got bent over for the price of hearing aids, but it was done right the first time (and I agree with my wife on that one )

Ironically enough, the name on my hearing aids wasn't mention in your "hearing aid plan"...

 

[Sigarms]

I got the Phonak Audeo P90s.

Same ones I got.

I do kind of love them. Nothing is perfect though...

The VA is a roll of the dice like any McDonalds you go to (per being local to who you visit IMO). Glad things work out for you!

 

[Herness]

Same ones I got.

I do kind of love them. Nothing is perfect though...

The VA is a roll of the dice like any McDonalds you go to (per being local to who you visit IMO),

How did you choose them if i can ask?
Did you do it together with your audiologist?
Also curious if someone trusts online hearing test. How accurate are those?
Looking forward to read your answers guys. Thanks in advance!

 

[Avenger]

How did you choose them if i can ask?
Did you do it together with your audiologist?
Also curious if someone trusts online hearing test. How accurate are those?

I didn't know anything about hearing aids when I went in. I was assigned an audiologist, and once he determined that I needed hearing aids, he gave me different styles to choose from. I based my decision on the size, the features my audiologist pointed out, and his opinion. I had the option of going with really small, completely in the ear ones that take batteries, to larger in the ear ones that are rechargeable. But the behind the ear ones, to me, seemed like they were easy to take on and off as I need for my daily job. They are not noise suppressors or ear plugs, so when I have to be in a really loud environment at work, I shut them off and remove them.

The audiologist also programmed them with my prescription. We did several tests to make sure the audio quality was to my satisfaction. I can go in anytime for adjustments, which I have yet to do.

I have never taken an online hearing test.

 

[goeduck]

Ironically enough, the name on my hearing aids wasn't mention in your "hearing aid plan"...

There are no brands mentioned in my medical plan. The second part of my #96 post is from CR, not my plan.